Do the nonprofits you support rely on fair and accurate (1) budgets, (2) facts and data, or (3) representation? If you answered “yes,” you already care about the 2020 Census. The Georgia Grantmakers Alliance and the Sapelo Foundation invite you to an important event for funders to discuss how the nonpartisan and constitutionally required 2020 Census may help (or harm) Georgians for the next decade.

Census expert Terri Ann Lowenthal and a panel of Georgia nonprofit leaders – representing the Georgia Budget & Policy Institute, the Georgia Food Bank Association and the Center for Pan Asian Community Services – will share context about past censuses, data and stories about how the Census affects Georgians, and a toolkit for foundations and nonprofits to act now to ensure a fair and accurate 2020 Census. We will ask those who are most interested to attend a follow-up meeting to coordinate efforts as 2020 quickly approaches. Join us!

Still not convinced? Please consider:

(1) Budgets: The 2010 Census is principally responsible for why Georgia currently receives $13.7 billion from the federal government annually (according to data from the Institute for Southern Studies). Now, imagine if the 2020 Census was inaccurate by just 10 percent. Could Georgians cope with losing $1.37 billion annually? What would that mean for hospitals, schools, businesses, law enforcement, food banks, infrastructure and any nonprofit program that directly or indirectly receives federal funds? Philanthropy and private dollars certainly cannot backfill that loss of funding, but we have time to ensure a fair and accurate 2020 Census.

(2) Facts and Data: Consider all the reports and pieces of legislation that will be produced from 2020-2030. Now, imagine what would happen if an inaccurate count of any population in Georgia led to inaccurate reports, pieces of legislation, and decisions? What would that mean for school zoning, employment statistics, utility maps, strategic plans, college graduation rates, food production, services and more?Philanthropy and private dollars certainly could not fix that loss of facts and data, but we have time to ensure a fair and accurate 2020 Census.

(3) Representation: Consider how the 2010 Census demonstrated how the South has the fastest growing population of any region in the country. In 2020 or 2030, Georgia may be due for more local, state, and national representatives, and/or those representatives will want to know about the makeup and needs of their constituents. Now, imagine what would happen if an inaccurate count led to underrepresentation, especially in our most urban or most rural (hard-to-count) counties? What would that mean for children, the elderly, the homeless, and more?Philanthropy and private dollars certainly could not prevent that loss of representation, but we have time to ensure a fair and accurate 2020 Census.

The Southeastern Council of Foundations strives to support Members and grantmakers with access to education, resources and networking by serving as a convener and facilitator, offering a diverse range of voices and perspectives. We do not endorse colleague organization views, but rather aim to provide access to a broad range of information and resources to increase grantmaking impact and develop philanthropic leaders throughout the region.